The Hours After Midnight
by secretofflameviii8
Summary: In Universe. Riku thinks about everything that had happened within the time he spent in the darkness. Who comes to cheer him up? Set after Kingdom Hearts 2.


**Disclaimer****: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any of the characters. **

It's been forever since I've posted anything up on this site. I hope everyone enjoys the short story. This is set in game after Kingdom Hearts 2.

**The Hours After Midnight**

The sky was dark and ominous. Rain could be heard tapping against the window pane. Riku sat with his legs up to his chest, his arms which had nowhere to go were folded and his head rested upon his arms. He hated the rain, the storms. Was it the strong wind that howled about? Was it because of the thunder that seemed to penetrate through his whole being? Was it the lighting that lit up the sky casting shadow's within the dark room? No it wasn't quite any of them but, what they reminded him of; what they represented.

It had been the same. The day that he had let the darkness in. The day that he had begun to lose himself and everything he loved. The day that he had begun to change into a monster consumed by jealousy, to blind to see things for what they really were. His heart ached with sorrow at the thought. How he passed through the portal of darkness watching Sora as he too became in-tangled by the darkness that surrounded them. He had no knowledge of what had become of Sora and his home world at that point. All he had was himself. Alone. The word seemed to echo and resonate within him. Yes, he had been alone. Even when Maleficent found him and took him in. Even when she was "helping" him. She never cared about him or what he wished for. She was just using him. Why couldn't he have seen that?

_ "Your stupid." _Sora's voice rang through his head. Riku could feel his stomach drop at the memory.

"_Your stupid. Sooner or later they'll swallow your heart." _Sora had been right. He had been right all along. Why did Riku fail to see it? Because he was jealous, because he had thought Sora had replaced him and no longer thought of him as his friend. Which had hurt, _really _hurt. Riku hated the rain. The storm had not ceased and continued to display it's fury upon the small town. He buried his face within his arms.

Memories. All of those hurtful things he had said and done to Sora. All of those horrible things he helped to become a reality for many and then... there was Ansem. The one entity he hated and feared more than anything else. That foul and deep abyss of darkness that waited to consume him once again. But would he give in? Would he allow the darkness to take him? Hell no! He would rather die trying to stay apart of the light than become the monster he had been. Riku could feel his face becoming warm and his eyes watered.

There was a knock at the door but Riku didn't hear it. He had been too lost in thought. The door opened and a teen about the age of Riku walked in. His brown hair slightly disheveled from sleep. "Riku..." the newcomer whispered. He hated seeing Riku like this. Most of the time Riku seemed fine. As if he had moved on and began to let go of all the things that had happened. But, on days like this when the rain came Riku seemed to revert back to a time when he blamed everything on himself. All he could see was a head of silver hair buried in arms. "Riku." He said a bit louder.

This time Riku looked up his blue-green eyes opened wide suggesting that the newcomer had startled him. "Sora?!" Riku said. Sora smiled sadly. "What are you doing in your room alone with the light's off?" Sora asked as he walked over and sat next to Riku. "Nothing really, just thinking." Riku responded. "Wanna talk about it?" Sora asked. Sora didn't need for Riku to tell him. He already knew what had been on Riku's mind. They had already had this conversation before a few times. Riku shook his head from side to side. Signaling that he did not wish to talk. "Riku, is there anything I can do?" Sora asked.

Riku smiled a small smile. After everything he had done; after everything he had said. Here was Sora trying to comfort him. Sora had told Riku many times that everything that had happened was not Riku's fault that Maleficent and Ansem were to blame. Riku had simply been used and misguided. The misunderstandings didn't help matters either. "Sora, thank you." Riku said. Sora tilted his head. "For what?" Sora asked. "For never giving up on me." Riku said as he leaned his head on Sora's shoulder. Sora smiled more genuinely this time. For all the things that had transpired after Sora had found His best friend again Riku never pushed Sora away. Instead Riku chose to fight the darkness and stay true to his friends. Which gave Sora great comfort in Riku's ability to recover from the long time he had spent alone surrounded by the evil which had lurked in the darkness. "You know I'll always be here for you Riku, no matter what." Sora said as he leaned his head on Riku's.


End file.
